And just like that, my trip to Paris has come and gone and I am back here in my apartment in Charlotte. My trip back from Paris was certainly an eventful one. First, I got stuck in my apartment as the door knob fell off when I was trying to leave so I had to wait for the landlord to come and let me out. Then, the train I was taking to the airport stopped when we were halfway there as there was an accident or something - I can't say for certain what happened because I just don't understand enough French to even come close to piecing it together, but let me tell you - getting a cab to the airport from there was a disaster as there were well over 100 people trying to hail cabs. Oy vey. I about had a panic attack as for awhile there I was fairly sure I was going to miss my flight.
But alas, it all worked out, and I am back in Charlotte. I feel incredibly blessed to have been able to take this trip to Paris. That city will always hold such a special place in my heart. It's certainly not perfect, no place is. But it's a perfect getaway destination for me. Between its history, beauty, and charm, Paris has certainly captured my heart and it's hard for me to imagine loving another city as much as I love Paris.
I had a lot of time to think on this trip, and a recurring theme of my thoughts was the crazy amount of uncertainty in my life right now. I am going to make a bold statement and say that my life holds more uncertainty than it ever has. A year from now, I don't know where I will be living, what job I will have, or whether I will be back to running. All this uncertainty weighs on a type-A planner like me.
But I know this much is true. I know I have family and friends (including those of you reading this) to lean on along the way. I know I have my faith in God and a (sometimes wavering) belief that things will work out as they are supposed to.
And I know that I will always have Paris. It will always be a place that I can go to (albeit not as often as I would like) to be reminded of who I am, what I value, and how very blessed I am.
9 comments:
"We'll always have Paris." Yes, you will.
I'm reading backwards now, but I'm glad I started here. I believe any journey is best served when there is afterthought and you have it nailed.
OK -- now just a little, teeny bit -- didn't you want to miss that flight and have it rescheduled? Even if it meant checking your bags at the airport and training back into the city? Just a little?
So glad you got to take this trip. I'm sure it would do us all a world of good to be in another country without anyone we knew and just 'be' for a week. Whatever happens in a year from now, I know you'll make it work and likely you'll feel a bit more sure about things than you do now.
What a great summary! So glad you got back safely, and you came to some great conclusions - even if the in between is a unknown - proud of you my friend!
Beautiful summary. Yes you'll always have Paris and I know you'll be back, probably several more times in your lifetime. I know that all this uncertainty is REALLY hard for you but I hope one day you can look back and see WHY everything that happened this year did happen and hopefully it kind of makes sense. For now, lots of thoughts and hugs your way!
Yes, just want to repeat everything Amber said! It's funny to look back on things that happened to us and see how it somehow led us to where we are today. All these uncertainties may feel overwhelming for now, and I just hope you can look back on this post in December 2014 and see how far you've come. :)
I'm so glad you were able to take this trip and I hope it's only the beginning of good things for you. Hugs!
The trip sounded like fun!
Play it again Sam!
I am glad you had a good trip and you made it safely back, even if it was a difficult trip. Have I told you that the first time I went to France, I DID miss my flight from Paris and I had to stay the night in the airport. Luckily they have rooms you can rent for the hour, but it really messed up everything, as I had someone picking me up in San Francisco on the other end!
Welcome home!
What a lovely closure to this trip. It makes me happy to know that even though you are in a time of flux, you know what makes you happy and treat yourself to those things when you can.
PS - Sweets broke the key to our flat in Firenze minutes before we were to leave, too. Ha.
all I can say is <3. :)
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